Advice to Declutter and Pack a Home in Preparation for Sale

Summer is a busy time to move and sell your home. With the housing market remaining strong, it is as important as ever to get as much return as possible from one of your largest assets: your home. As moving professionals, our advice is to declutter and clear the space as much as possible prior to selling. 

Consider Your Costs

One motivator that is not often thought about is the price of moving. Local moves are charged based on the size of the crew and the amount of hours worked, and if the movers are also packing the home, an additional cost is added. Long distance moves are charged based on the miles driven and weight of the shipment, as well as the packing piece if desired. 

In both scenarios, the less weight and less packing, the less the move will cost. With the cost of moving rising due to shortage of drivers, as well as the cost of fuel and operation, this can require a large amount of savings.

Packing Up

Once the process of decluttering, also known as downsizing or rightsizing, has occurred, packing of the home can begin. First, plan to pack items that are not being used and will not be needed. Oftentimes, this includes closets, spare bedrooms, basements, and garage areas. Soft and lightweight items can stay in dressers and chests. All furniture will be shrink wrapped or pad-wrapped and secured closed.

Group like items together. For example, you do not want to pack fragile china cabinet items with pots and pans or tools. Make sure to get the right packing materials before putting your belongings in boxes. Prior to loading the box, add a layer of 2” to 3” packing material on the bottom of the box. This can be newspapers, towels, etc. 

Use caution with newspapers; it should not be used on packing individual items. The print can rub off, and it makes for a very messy unpack. 

Fragile items should be individually wrapped; the more fragile, the more packing should be placed around. Once the fragile item is fully wrapped in paper, its edges should not be felt. 

Plates, serving platters, mirrors, and picture frames should be placed vertically in the box. Heaviest items should be placed in the bottom-most layer. Once an entire row is completed, another 2” to 3” of packing material should be added before starting the next layer. This next layer should be lighter items than those below.

Organizing Your Boxes

Once the box is completed, make sure to label it with the contents and where you want the box to end up in the new place (kitchen, master bedroom, living room, garage, etc). If there are liquids in the box, mark an upward arrow to warn the mover not to tip the box. 

For extremely fragile items or lampshades, mark the box as ‘top load,’ so that it is protected in the move. For items you need when the truck first arrives, mark the box or item ”‘last load”; this lets your movers know that they should put them in last. 

Ready to downsize for your upcoming move? We can make the process easier. Contact us to get started.